Come for the 3-Year-Olds, but Stay for the Stayers

After a while, 3-year-olds become truly tiresome. So much is expected of them. So many rich races are bestowed upon the division. So often they disappoint and fade away, leaving us to wonder what the fuss was all about. Once the Triple Crown is in the books, consolation prizes dot the landscape, offering chances to recover all those thousands spent on entry and starting fees while reaching for the stars. One of them comes up June 20, when Thistledown presents the $500,000 Ohio Derby (G3) at a mile and one-eighth. One week later, Los Alamitos Race Course will have a Derby. Then later on, there will be Derbies in Indiana, Iowa, Oklahoma, Illinois, New Mexico, and Washington, with another collection of races called Derby for 3-year-olds on the grass. Stop me if you've heard these names before, but Chip Honcho and Ocelli head the field in Ohio that also has drawn Desert Gate, Bob Baffert's most reliable 3-year-old, who so far this season has taken the path of least resistance. Good luck and safe trips to all. Hope to see you next year. Meanwhile, those of us who appreciate racehorses in for the long haul have been treated to memorable performances by two of the best in the last few days. On June 14 at Santa Anita Park, 8-year-old Gold Phoenix (IRE) galloped past a pack of outclassed rivals to win the San Juan Capistrano Stakes (G3T), a race that requires about 1 3/4 miles' worth of concentration while negotiating a downhill run, a dirt crossing, and four turns, one of them right-handed. Then June 18, in the heart of the Royal Ascot festival in England, 8-year-old Trawlerman (IRE) came within a short head of taking his second straight Gold Cup Stakes (G1), a test of 2 miles, 3 furlongs, and 210 yards over hill and dale. After leading from the start, Trawlerman was overtaken in the final two strides by a colt half his age. Such Thoroughbreds should be celebrated to the high heavens. Being able to survive their many seasons of training, racing, and rehabilitation makes them miracles of equine nature. Too often they are considered mere novelties—older fellows who can still drive the ball 250 on the senior tour—or taken for granted while awaiting to be called past their prime. In truth, they make the sport a better place. It should be no surprise that both Trawlerman and Gold Phoenix were bred in Ireland. Raised on ould sod, peat, and Guinness, they were built to last. Trawlerman has won 11 of 24 starts, Gold Phoenix 12 of 33. Trawlerman, a son of Golden Horn (GB), came out first, in late November of his 2-year-old season, with a modest third for John and Thady Gosden over the all-weather surface at Chelmsford City, a baby of a British racecourse opened only in 2008. The following February, Gold Phoenix, by Belardo (IRE), finally broke cover to win a maiden event at Dundalk Stadium, up there in the northeast corner of the Irish Republic. Word got out, and Gold Phoenix was quickly snapped up by the California-based Little Red Feather Racing group, while Trawlerman broke his maiden for Godolphin, then was given a shot to make the big show with a test run in the 2021 Classic Trial Stakes (G3) at Sandown Park. No luck. At this point, they both fell off the radar. Gold Phoenix languished in California with Phil D'Amato, dealing with niggling problems that kept him on the bench for the rest of 2021. Trawlerman was away for nearly a year before his comeback in April 2022. As 3-year-olds they were all but invisible, while such contemporaries as Adayar (IRE), Hurricane Lane (IRE), and St Mark's Basilica (FR) dominated the headlines. Those names have faded now, while Gold Phoenix and Trawlerman soldier on. The Gold Cup near miss put Trawlerman's earnings over the $2.6 million mark, a bankroll nearly matched by the $2.4 million earned by Gold Phoenix. More significantly, the San Juan Capistrano represented the 10th graded stakes victory for Gold Phoenix, this one geared down by 5 lengths under Hector Berrios. "Was it the toughest field of horses? No," said Little Red Feather's Billy Koch. "But historically speaking, he ran the fastest San Juan in 15 years, and he was under wraps pretty much the last eighth of a mile. He got 98 Beyer and a 2 3/4 on Thorograph, so he's actually faster on the sheets now than he was as a 5-year-old. How amazing is that?" Koch has been around long enough to savor the memory of the San Juan as the premiere grass event on the California circuit. "When it was a $400,000, grade 1 race won by horses like John Henry, Kotashaan, and Bienamado," Koch said. "These days, we breed for speed. It's the turf milers people are looking for. Races like the San Juan no longer get the grading or the purses so, of course, they won't attract the kind of horses they used to." And that's a shame. Even in a quick-twitch culture of instant gratification and 10-second TikToks, there is something dreamily satisfying about watching Thoroughbreds amble along at a serious gallop for a mile and a half or more of foreplay, then make a mad dash to the wire. Neither Trawlerman nor his rival Scandinavia were asked to pick up the pace until they had run a full 2 miles in the Gold Cup, going from laid-back to full bore down the Ascot straight to deafening cheers. Gold Phoenix is also one of the few bona fide California crowd pleasers on the current California stage. He marched into the Santa Anita winner's circle last weekend like a golden prince on parade, the checkerboard pattern curried into his hindquarters catching the late spring rays. Clearly, he enjoys his job. Later this summer, knock on wood, he will be shooting for his fifth straight victory in the Del Mar Handicap (G2T), after winning an already unprecedented fourth last year, much to the delight of his seaside fan club. He might even turn up in the Eddie Read Stakes (G2T) July 26, a race he won as a callow 5-year-old, but it will be Gold Phoenix who makes that call. "My wife, Katie, asked me last night how much longer Gold Phoenix could run," Koch said. "I mean, I think he can run until he doesn't want to run anymore. After that, we will find him the best home of any retired racehorse in history."